Final Fantasy XIII - Command Synergy Battle System

Final Fantasy games have been changing combat systems between each game in the franchise. Taking this into consideration; the combat of XIII is probably the most divergent and ambitious system to date. It still adheres to basic conventions of the series such as turn based combat, 3 character teams, et cetera but it takes a drastic step back in terms of player-avatar alignment. Players no longer directly control 3 characters in combat: two are left in the hands of competent computers while the player has control of the party leader. This and other leaps the combat system takes are interesting choices which have substantial results on the gameplay that, in my opinion, work against player engagement.
The Command Synergy Battle (CSB) system emphasizes speed and precision. This is reinforced in many different aspects of the game. Damaging enemies will fill their chain gauge which causes them to take more damage. After the initial strike the gauge will empty itself increasingly quickly which teaches players to do as many attacks as possible in small amounts of time. Also the score screens at the end of each battle will rate players on damage done, damage taken, and time length of the fight. Even performing Paradigm Shifts, the act of changing the collective roles of your team (called Paradigms), at the right time will make the ATB gauge fill faster thus allowing the player more actions over less time. All these systems encourage players to act quickly in the game’s strategic environment. This isn’t an inherently bad concept but the CSB’s shortcomings really show when the required speed begins to clash with the required precision and other game system’s styles.

Precision in combat execution is just as important as speed. Many enemies react strongly to certain attack types whether they are magical, physical, or have an elemental type to them. Some enemies are naturally resistant to all types of damage until they have their Chain Gauge filled entirely which makes every attack cause devastating amounts of damage. It becomes important to spend actions to “Libra” an opponent which will reveal the targets weaknesses allowing AI partners and the auto-battle option to be more effective. I found that I used Auto-Battle more than any other command available from the menus. All of combat centered around two turns of Libras to thoroughly know an enemy type and then auto-battle to victory.
I found that navigating the menu to select my desired ability proved more arduous than I anticipated because of the speed required to make my actions effective. For example: timing AOE attacks to hit multiple targets while they are grouped together or selecting specific spells to exploit a target’s elemental weakness in conjunction with AI partners. These issues recur throughout the game which discouraged me from using anything but the auto-battle button.
The battle system’s prominent feature, Paradigm shifts, didn’t engage me as a player. The act of shifting paradigms boiled down to pressing three buttons and selecting an item from a menu. Admittedly there is a lot of pre-battle preparation to make this system work but time spent organizing a chart of roles wasn’t fun or engaging for me. The combined elements I mention streamline gameplay down to where I, as the player, didn’t feel necessary to the game. I wasn't involved in the combat so much as I guided the characters through their enemies.